


100 times he made life worthwhile

by NianaiBell



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: AU! Chapters, Alternate Universe - Police, Appearances by most of the Vongola, Awkward Flirting, Bad Driving, Bad Jokes, Baseball, Canon Compliant, College, Embarrassment, Gonna see it through, High School, Hospitalization, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Introspection, Karaoke, Light Angst, M/M, Romance, TYL! chapters, a bit of everything, childhood AU!, the boys are still being themselves, what have i gotten myself into?, will add more tags and characters when they appear
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-24
Updated: 2015-07-25
Packaged: 2018-02-10 04:26:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2010870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NianaiBell/pseuds/NianaiBell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A take on the 100 themes challenge. Centers on Gokudera and Yamamoto and how their lives intersect, twine and bind -always.<br/>Various chapter ratings (warnings at the end of chapters). </p><p>Theme 17: Morning. "Potential continuation of Chapter 7."<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 73: Park

73\. Park

_"Your driving really sucks you know that?"_

 

It had taken him five years of knowing the guy, but Gokudera finally knew something Yamamoto Takeshi wasn't naturally good at.

The guy couldn't drive a car to save his life.

Brown eyes looked worriedly at the death grip his passenger had on his seat.

"Uh, Gokudera? I think you can relax a little. Tsuna wouldn't like the holes you're making on the seat."

Gokudera only had the nerve to shoot him a deadly glare before he chose to focus on his breathing and inner chanting. Stay calm, stay calm, _stay calm_ \- oh for god's sake why couldn't Yamamoto suck at something _not_ life threatening?

He swallowed down the bile in his throat, reminding himself that he had dodged bullets, escaped many life or death situations and had saved the future. How would it look if a simple driving test was what killed him?

He opened one eye, trying to judge where they were at. But the world was flying by too fast, buildings and people becoming little blurs of color to Gokudera's eyes. He quickly shut his eyes and began to pray.

Yamamoto of course had the biggest grin on his face. The idiot was _enjoying himself._ And Gokudera was focusing on not throwing up his lunch. He had always know that Reborn had the oddest training simulations for the young Vongola, but when the now slightly taller hitman (Verde was still working on a way to return the Arcoblano's to their true ages) had suggested that they all learn how to drive Gokudera had thought that maybe the hitman was going to go easy on them for once. But since when in his life had anything been easy?

They had all found out that driving skill had no correlation with their actual battle abilities. Three days after the start of the whole ordeal and Gokudera had been the first to pass Reborn's 'driving obstacle escape route test of doom', which had led to the shiny new license currently in his wallet. Next had been Hibari, who had no regard for rules whatsoever, which seemed to please the little hitman. Mukuro, Ryohei and the girls seemed to quickly grasp the basic concepts and had also procured a license.

That left Tsuna and Yamamoto. The two males had struggled greatly with the whole idea of paying attention to the actual road and the idea that a brake pedal existed. Well mostly these were problems Yamamoto was facing, Tsuna was just struggling with the idea of multitasking and the fear of other drivers around him. So Reborn had taken the liberty of asking Lal Mirch teaching Tsuna and Gokudera teaching the baseball idiot.

Gokudera fought the urge to yell when Yamamoto took one of the curves going about 70mph. His stomach dropped and he bit his lip to stop the stream of curses from leaving his mouth. The idiot had the worst case of having a lead foot that Gokudera was surprised the gas pedal still functioned properly.

Breathing deeply through his mouth, Gokudera sent up a small prayer that the 10th was faring better with the crazy woman.

"Do you want the radio on or something? You've been awfully quite Dera." Yamamoto's eyes once again left the road to glance at the Storm Guardian.

Gritting his teeth together, Gokudera snapped. "Eyes on the fucking road moron."

There was a soft sigh of discontentment from Yamamoto before his eyes finally settled on the empty road. Luckily Reborn had thought to use a more deserted part of Italy to try this whole little endeavor on.

"So is that a no to the music?"

Gokudera was practically bleeding from how deep his fingernails were digging into his sweaty palms.

"I don't want any music, what I want is for you to focus on the learning how to drive!"

Yamamoto laughed, smiling like Gokudera had told a hilarious joke.

"Calm down Gokudera! I'm not doing that badly. Reborn even said I've been improving."

"Yeah, because you haven't _hit_ anything in four days."

"But still! Give it a week more and I'm sure I'll pass the baby's test!"

Gokudera shuddered at the thought of riding in a moving metal vehicle of death with Yamamoto for another full week. He'd never live to see his 10 year later self at this rate.

He raised a hand covered in rings to his forehead and growled, "You know what? I've had enough, just pull into one of those empty spots."

"Whatever you say Gokudera!" Yamamoto quipped and Gokudera swallowed at the determined glint that snuck onto his face.

Yamamoto jerked the steering wheel harshly, skidding into an open spot, barley avoiding the very expensive looking Benz parked ahead of him.

He turned to Gokudera, smiling brightly and looking very much like a puppy.

"See Gokudera! I'm getting a lot better. Now I can park without hitting anything!"

The bomber simply flew out of the car and kissed the parking lot.


	2. 18: Loneliness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Yamamoto and Gokudera are kids. 
> 
> "You know, I promise from here on today, you won't be lonely anymore Gokudera."

Theme 18: Loneliness 

_"You know, I promise from here on today, you won't be lonely anymore Gokudera."_

 

Yamamoto knew he had a great life.

Every morning he woke up to his dad singing loudly and out of tune to the latest pop song, hacking away at dead fish for the shop. Every day his father would greet him with a smile and a homemade lunch full of delicious snacks before kissing him on the forehead and telling him he was going to be late for his little league practice. Every morning he'd rush out of the shop on legs that were growing too quickly and he pass the little old ladies watering their plants, who waved warmly and wished him good luck at practice. He'd smile back, the tooth that had fallen out last week leaving an awkward gap in his mouth. And every day he'd run to practice knowing that this was what he had to come home to.

And by his 7 year old standards, that was all he really needed.

So one sweltering morning after he had waved to the old ladies on his block, he rounded the street corner and passed the same alleyway he'd always passed. Except this time he heard sniffling.

He paused mid stride and looked back over his shoulder. Yamamoto had never heard crying on his way to practice. The only thing he was likely to find in that alley was the grumpy old cat that was missing most of his tail. The boy didn't spare a second thought to how he was going to be late to practice, instead choosing to back tract to that lonely little alley.

Peeking around a brick wall, he waited for his eyes to adjust to the dimness before looking for the source of the sniffling. The noise had diminished to sporadic hiccups and Yamamoto frowned as he failed to see anybody back here. A flash of light distracted him to his left, causing him to finally locate the mysterious crying. He at least knew where he should head now.

Yamamoto picked his way carefully over to the small blob, avoiding dirty scraps of clothing and bits of glass. He smiled at the grumpy old cat who sat watching the whole scene. It hissed at him. Finally getting close enough make out the lumpy blob, Yamamoto adjusted his baseball cap so he could inspect the sight.

A silver head of hair was burrowed deeply into royal blue sleeves, torn and stained from Yamamoto could only guess. The boy (for that's what he could finally identify the crying heap to be) was dressed in a beautiful suit that had obviously been destroyed from the kid's activates. The pant legs were in worse shape than the sleeves, showing glimpses of unhealthy pale skin.

Another sniffle surprised Yamamoto and he stopped staring at the boy, instead he crouched down to the kids level, placing his chin on his folded arms.

"Are you alright?"

The kid's head snapped up sharply at the new voice, oblivious to when Yamamoto had appeared. Yamamoto blinked, slightly surprised that this pale little kid even had pale green eyes. But a soft smile planted it's way onto his face at the tears held at the corners of those eyes.

The boy pressed himself against the wall glaring at the intruder. He tried to blink back the tears and shrink into the bricks behind him. "Who are you?"

His voice was raspy and unsurprisingly nervous. Yamamoto smiled brightly at the boy and titled his cap up so the kid could see his face better.

"I'm Yamamoto Takeshi! I live right down the road at the sushi shop." He pointed over his shoulder at the alley's opening, indicating the general direction of his house. "I'm on my way to baseball practice. And who are you?" The smile never left his already tan young face.

Distress rolled off the younger boy in waves and he pulled nervously at his pant legs. The green eyes were still bright with unshed tear, refusing to look at Yamamoto.

Yamamoto cocked his head to the side. He didn't even think before he spoke the next time.

"I like your hair."

That snapped the little boy's attention back to the baseball player. His voice only had a slight quiver when he asked, "What did you say?"

Another warm smile. "I said." Yamamoto drew out the last word for emphasis, "I like your hair. It's a pretty silver color. My whole family's got this plain ole black hair."

An idea struck Yamamoto and he rocked forward to look at the kid closely. "Say, are you a foreigner?"

The young boy had adverted his eyes again and was biting his lip.

"Yes, my dad's Italian but my mother's got Japanese blood-" only when the kid got to the word mother he seemed to tense up, tears welling up in his eyes again.

Yamamoto watched as the little boy shook viciously. What was wrong with his mother?

With the amount of tack that all little kids have Yamamoto blurted out. "Is your mom the reason you were crying?"

Silver hair shook violently, the boy's breathing became labored and Yamamoto frowned worriedly at the oncoming tears.

"My mom's g-gone. Dad and s-sis aren't sad and mom-" But the boy was wiping the tears from his eyes with the same dirty shirt sleeves. Yamamoto automatically reached out, wiping the tears away. Crying wasn't suited for the little boy's face.

The boy paused, eyes wide as warm thumbs wiped over his heated cheeks.

Yamamoto's voice wasn't sad when he spoke, instead he focused on chasing the tears from the little boy's eyes. "My momma's gone too. She died a few years ago, but pop told me that mom loved me a whole lot and that she was always going to watch me."

The little hiccups were subsiding and Yamamoto smiled at the boy, encouraged as the boy stopped shaking.

"I'm sure your mom loved you very much too!"

Green eyes looked up hopefully at the words.

"You know what? I bet she's even watching over you right now!" Yamamoto smiled at the now still boy.

A little fist tried to wipe at his face, but Yamamoto wiped the tears away for him. "You really think so?"

Yamamoto nodded his head fiercely, assuring the boy that's exactly what he thought.

The kid remained silent for a moment, the green eyes searching the tan face above him. Embarrassedly he glanced down. "Gokudera."

Yamamoto's hands stilled, his head tilting to the side curiously. "What?"

A blush crept up the pale face as green eyes quickly glanced at the other boy again. Yamamoto bit back a smile as the boy stared pointedly at the ground.

"My name is Gokudera Hayato. My mom would have like you Yamamoto."

The smile that took over Yamamoto's face was unconscious but completely heartfelt and he rubbed the boy's head affectionately. "I think my mom would have really liked _you_ Gokudera Hayato."

Seconds ticked by as Yamamoto waited for the boy to look back up. When he finally did, Yamamoto removed his hands before tucking them behind his knees. He knew he was really late to practice and Coach was probably going to be really unhappy but he couldn't care at the moment. Gokudera was much more important.

Yamamoto sat on the cold ground, eyes watching the boy in front of him.

"Where do you live Gokudera?" he watched the silver haired boy shake his head again, arms grabbing at himself. Yamamoto rubbed his cheek absently. What did that mean? He tried again. "What about your dad and sister?"

Gokudera still refused to respond, holding himself tightly. And Yamamoto didn't understand what all that meant because he was still 7 and naïve and would be for many more years. But he knew that whatever was going with Gokudera now involved him. He wanted to be there for this little boy. This little shaking mess of a boy who had just lost his mother. Maybe Yamamoto felt kinship with the boy or maybe it was something entirely different but whatever it was he was positive the pale boy was part of his life now. Better or worse.

Yamamoto didn't even need to hear the bitter little explanation Gokudera gave.

"I ran away from home two months ago." The green eyes turned to Yamamoto, stubbornly looking up. "I'm not going back."

"Don't you want to see your sister or daddy at least?" Yamamoto asked quietly.

Gokudera's head dropped back into his arms. "I'm okay being alone."

Before Gokudera could follow Yamamoto's movements, the taller boy had stood up and offered a hand to him, warm but honest expression in place. "But Gokudera never needs to be alone. Not anymore."

He waited until Gokudera's eyes were focused solely on him before he continued.

"Because from now on I'm going to be Gokudera's family."

Feeble protest spilled from Gokudera's mouth but Yamamoto in all his 7 year old stubbornness simply laughed and slipped his fingers together with the much paler ones of Gokudera. Large wet eyes stared at him, and Yamamoto helped the boy stand up.

Gokudera didn't meet his eyes, but fisted his tiny hands into the side of the Namimori baseball jersey Yamamoto wore. He smiled brightly before he removed his baseball cap and plopped it onto a head of silver hair.

"Let's go talk to pops about sharing a room, okay Gokudera?"

Yamamoto started forward and lead the way to his house, smiling.

"How do you feel about sushi for dinner?"

_You know, I promise from here on today, you won't be lonely anymore Gokudera._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! This is part duex of the 100 themes and honestly was one of my favorites to write. kid!Gokudera and kid!Yamamoto were cute. 
> 
> Warnings: N/A 
> 
> Thanks for taking the time to read :)
> 
> Ciaossu!


	3. 39: Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Vongola are students at a local college. 
> 
> Or why certain Guardian's using their manly charms on poor secretaries is wrong.

Gokudera was absolutely amazed that they had all gotten into the same college. He had expected everyone to go their separate ways after high school, only coming back together after Tsuna had officially taken over as the 10th Vongola boss. Then they would all reunite and begin to protect the bright future they had created together almost six years ago.

But for all the plans Gokudera ever made, his idiot friends managed to mess it up.

Currently he was wandering around after his first ever college class. Tsuna still had another half hour of lecture before he got out but they had made lunch plans together already. Smiles had become a more common occurrence for Gokudera and as he thought how nothing had really changed since their middle school days, that small sign of happiness appeared on his face.

A bit later he stood staring at pile of books in his hands, wondering how he'd spaced out while checking out at the library. The collection here was much larger than the local one back home and he'd had been itching to do some reading while at college. The young man at the desk bid him goodbye and he left without a word.

In the hall he flipped through one of the larger books (A ditty of book on the chemical composition of dynamite and it's uses) before he passed by the register's office. When he glanced up curiously he did not expect to find two very familiar faces smiling at a poor fluster young woman. Gokudera observed for a moment, intent upon finding out just what Ryohei and Yamamoto were doing in this office. Their classes had already been scheduled weeks ago by Reborn and himself.

But as Gokudera watched he noticed that the two sports enthusiasts were not wearing their usual dumb smiles. No these were down right seductive smiles. Gokudera had seen Yamamoto wear that look plenty of times before whenever he wanted something in particular from Gokudera. And as many times as he had seen it, he had always gave into the taller boy, protests feeble against the warm arms hugging him in thanks.

On the other hand he had never seen Lawn Head with that look. He was a bubbling idiot 99 percent of the time but he must have some sexual prowess if he could land any woman on this campus. Which he had actually managed to do already, and she even seemed normal. He was leaning casually over the secretaries desk, lips pulled tight over a white tooth smile and a hand playing with a pen nearby. Yamamoto was leaning next to Ryohei, brown eyes hooded, smirking, and had a casual hand running through his dark hair.

Gokudera exhaled through his mouth, partially annoyed at the sneaky men in front of him and partially annoyed from the way the young woman was practically drooling over his friends.

"You see Laura, that is why we simply have to be in Trig 155 together. It's imperative to our wellbeing at this school." Yamamoto drawled, eyes never leaving the young woman.

Ryohei nodded sagely. "Of course if we were able to remain at this school we could see pretty things like you all the time."

The blush that erupted over the girls face was nauseating. Gokudera had enough.

He snapped the book he had in his hand closed with an audible crack and pinned the two Vongola's with his gaze. They both looked excitedly at their newfound guest, dropping the seductive ploy instantly. Gokudera maintained eye contact with the boys and made his way over to the little desk. To the woman (Laura?) he shot a deeply apologetic glance.

"I'm sorry Laura, what trouble have these two idiots been giving you?" Gokudera made sure he swallowed the annoyance rising in his throat and tried to smile. He hoped it looked believable.

Laura blushed up at the silver haired male in front of her and thanked every god that had ever existed that she had gotten to work the desk today. In less than one hour she had already seen three hot men and the first two were practically flirting with her! Her eyes traveled appreciably over the new comer, delighted over the pale man with gorgeous green eyes and exotic silver hair. She tried to watch his face but her eyes traveled over the lean body, covered only with a simple printed tee shirt and dark washed jeans. While she was preoccupied she missed the tallest of the men frown at her gawking.

The newcomer's face tilted slightly at her in apology before her two previous guest spoke up.

"Octopus Head! We were just talking about you!" Ryohei exclaimed happily, all seduction pretenses vanished.

Yamamoto on the other hand leaned onto his elbows and eyed the newcomer happily. "You told me you were going to be in class for another 15 minutes Gokudera."

Gokudera spun on his heels and grabbed the two by their shirt collars. "You idiots, this is our first day and you're already causing trouble?"

But before the two could pour out excuses that he would just ignore anyways, the little secretary spoke back up, voice awed.

"You're the Gokudera Hayato in Trigonometry 155 that these two are trying to get into?"

Gokduera's grip slackened on his hostages shirts and he blinked curiously at the woman. "What do you mean you're the one?"

Happy that she had figured out this little puzzle of hot men, the girl clapped her hands together before pointing a finger at Ryohei and Yamamoto.

"These two came in about a half hour ago to ask if they could be placed in Trig 155, the one that you're in Gokudera-san!"

The girl barely noticed the man retighten his grip on the shirt collars in his fist. She continued on with a dreamy expression, hands laced under her chin like a school girl.

"They were going on and on about how they needed to be in class with the beautiful genius, Gokudera Hayato! They kept saying how it was so you could tutor them and then they wouldn't fail. Oh and they mentioned that I would be doing them a big favor because you all were really close friends and it was only natural to put you all together."

By the end of her speech Gokudera was beet red and growling at the two partners in crime. He hissed something under his breath before he began to stalk out of the small office, pulling the men by their collars. Over his shoulder he called back angrily to Laura. "I'm sorry for these two miss! I will be sure to reprimand them myself!"

Laura's boss rushed out of her office several seconds later to see her employee had fainted from a massive nosebleed.

* * *

 

Gokudera pushed his arm up against Yamamoto's throat, tight enough to cause the taller male to wince.

"You idiot! I told you not to cause any trouble for the tenth and on your first day here you managed to do just that!"

Yamamoto cracked one eye open warily and smiled at his irate boyfriend. "Calm down 'Dera. It wasn't all that bad! We were just talking to her-."

Gokudera applied a little more pressure against his throat and growled at the baseball player. That wasn't the point. The point was that his boyfriend had automatically done the exact opposite of what he said and had given that woman some false hope that the men in her office were potential partners for her. And Yamamoto was clearly off the market.

"Hey, Dera?" Yamamoto began again, wiggling slightly to adjust the bombers death grip so he could breathe. "Would you mind letting up a bit? I would like to breathe." He pointed weakly at his throat to better emphasize the point.

A frustrated sigh left Gokudera and he pushed himself roughly away. He turned and began to run his fingers through his hair, rearranging the strands into new patterns with every pass of his hand. Why wouldn't Yamamoto listen to him? It wasn't that hard. He was just trying to look out for the tenth, for himself, for Yamamoto because damn it he cared for that idiot and everything he had chosen was in Yamamoto's best interest.

Yamamoto's warm chin rested on the top of silver hair and two tan arms wrapped themselves around the thin torso of Gokudera. When Gokudera stiffened, Yamamoto pulled the colder body closer to him, back to chest, simply holding his boyfriend.

"I'm sorry Dera. I didn't mean to upset you. Ryohei and I really think we would be better off together in class with you. You could help us in lecture, and you could keep us both in line." Yamamoto buried his nose into Gokudera's hair, his words smothered slightly by the hair. "We all have to take the class anyways. So why not take it together?"

Gokudera stood quietly in the embrace, hands unclenching at his side. He felt the fight leaving him and he slumped a little into the body behind him.

"Don't even mention Ryohei right now. That idiot is just as guilty as you are."

The warm laugh that was completely Yamamoto rumbled against Gokudera's back. He tried not to think about how nice that felt.

"You know, you probably shouldn't have used dynamite on him. I don't think Sun flames could repair all that damage." His voice told Gokudera that he was smiling.

"Idiots always heal faster. He's been through worse." Gokudera shrugged his shoulders and laid the back of his head against Yamamoto's shoulder, which Yamamoto took as a sign it was okay for him to kiss the forehead presented to him.

Looking up into warm brown eyes, Gokudera blinked at the affection so openly displayed there.

"So am I forgiven Gokudera?"

Turning in the arms around him Gokudera adjusted so that his chest lined up to that of Yamamoto. He flicked playful at his forehead, frowning at the happy expression there. "As long as you understand that seducing poor office workers to do your bidding is wrong." Gokudera's eyes drifted away from Yamamoto and he sighed. "That poor girl is probably having fantasies about the two of you right now. She was practically salivating when I walked by."

Gokudera wasn't expecting Yamamoto to pull him closer or the head that buried itself into his shoulder. He blinked at his boyfriend curiously.

"What's wrong with you, baseball idiot?"

He felt more so than saw the red that creeped onto Yamamoto's cheeks and ears.

"I didn't like how she looked at you. Ryohei and I were asking for that attention. You walked in and she just melted at the sight of you." Brown eyes looked up seriously at Gokudera and Gokudera bit his lip.

He tilted his head haughtily and smirked. "Don't tell me you're jealous?"

Yamamoto buried his head into Gokudera's shoulder again. Gokudera raised his arms to hug the hunched over boy, laughter caught in his throat.

He brushed a pale hand along Yamamoto's jaw, beckoning the jock to look at him. The pout was evident on his face.

"You have no reason to be jealous baseball idiot. Some idiot already has my heart."

And the smile was blinding, Gokudera barely had time to note before warm lips pressed tightly against his own. His arms went up to grasp short black hair and Yamamoto smiled into their kiss.

Pulling back too soon Yamamoto grinned down at the flushed face before him. "I promise to never flirt with office workers again, okay? Even if it's what all they gangsters do in old time movies."

Gokudera shook his head, "Seducing people just so we can be in the same class is sweet, but wrong Yamamoto."

A quick peck to Gokudera's cheek and then Yamamoto was back to showing his boyfriend just how much he liked the idea of Gokudera's method of reprimanding him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part trois! 
> 
> Sporadic updates? Funniness to make up for it?
> 
> Stay tuned! Ciaossu!


	4. 33: Pray

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let him live

The walls would look better if they were a pastel blue Yamamoto decided by the fourth night he was in the hospital.

Plain white was boring and when you were in the hospital as much as he was, it became almost dizzying. Of course Yamamoto only had time to consider questionable wallpaper choices because he wasn’t the one laid up with injuries. No, he’d been away in Japan when the whole fiasco occurred. But when Lambo called him, he knew something was wrong by the quivering voice. After the call Yamamoto finished his mission in a day and was back in Italy just as quickly.

What he saw when he arrived was much worse than he’d expected.

Gokudera, barely 20, was wrapped in layers of bandages. Ones that Yamamoto had traced over a million times in the course of four days. His fingers had followed the cotton that wrapped around both wrists up to his elbows (Tsuna had said those were burns from pulling Lambo from the car on fire). He had traced the bandages running around pale thin hips and ribs (most broken from explosions that were too close), he traced the one running over a broken nose many times. He knew from experience how much breaking a nose hurt, and all the _blood…_

Yamamoto had memorized every wire and tube plugged into the small body. Tsuna hadn’t looked away from Gokudera as he explained the mission; Gokudera had been excited to be of use to Tsuna, but he had blown up at having to bring such a young Lambo along, but Lambo was just going to be a decoy… Tsuna had tried not to cry but Yamamoto hadn’t missed the stray tears that fell as he looked at his right hand man. He was going to tell Gokudera he had finally earned the position after the mission and now he didn’t even know if he’d be able to.

Other than Tsuna, no one had stayed long in the tiny hospital room. Everyone had stopped by, offering apologizes and well wishes, sometimes bringing flowers or food for Yamamoto. He had tried to act normal the first day, but after 24 hours of no progress his sunny demeanor had fell. He could hear Gokudera scolding him in his head. _Stop making everybody worry idiot. I’m fine, nothing a right hand man couldn’t handle._

The bruising under Gokudera’s eye was a sickly purple now and Yamamoto brushed a thumb over it tenderly. Really, he thought with a laugh, Gokudera was just so _pale_. How could somebody with so much life be that pale and lifeless?

Yamamoto pressed a kiss to the bruised and bandaged hand in his, before his head replaced where his lips had been. He had been delaying on asking Gokudera to go out with him for years now and Yamamoto vowed that as soon as Gokudera woke up (because he would wake up. A coma wasn’t enough to kill Gokudera) that Yamamoto would kiss him then and there and ask him out. Because they weren’t in middle school anymore and he didn’t have any time to waste waiting for the perfect moment.

Eyes closed tightly, Yamamoto sent up a small prayer that he could tell Gokudera how much he loved him. Soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it's been a while. If you've read this already on FF then it's nothing new but hopefully I can at least get caught up on posting old chapters. Maybe some new ones soon?


	5. 11. Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gokudera becomes the temporary manager of the Namimori baseball team.

Wiping sweat off of his forehead with the back of his arm, Yamamoto glanced over to the dugout for the sixth time in ten minutes.

Every time he looked over he expected the scene to change, to somehow revert back to the same sight he had been used to during the past three years at Namimori. But even as he eyed the figure in a white baseball jersey and a hat, Yamamoto couldn't quite convince himself the image was real. Maybe he hadn't really woken up this morning and this was all a dream.

"Concentrate baseball-freak! No, not you Honda! The one standing there like an idiot."

Yeah, Gokudera was manger of the Namimori Baseball Team. Yamamoto couldn't believe it either.

But that rough voice and silver hair made him easy to spot among the baseball players. And Gokudera didn't try to hide. His scowl completely contradicted every smile on the field and his constant cursing made their teacher cringe. More than once Gokudera had been scolded for making players cry.

Winding his arm back to pitch, Yamamoto thought about how Gokudera had managed to end up coaching a bunch of baseball players that he obviously hated.

It had been fourth period, and the teacher had asked Gokudera to solve a problem on the board. As usual Gokudera refused to comply with the man and the teacher fumed until Gokudera gave in, walking up to the board, where a student tripped him. This started a full out brawl in the class and the principal had given Gokudera a choice: suspension or accept the baseball manager's position for a month. The team's usual manager had quit a few weeks ago and they were struggling with their matches lately. Gokudera's energy might actually help the team out. Gokudera had opted for suspension, until the principal made it clear this wasn't a choice.

So here they were, Gokudera looking like he'd rather be fighting the Varia and Yamamoto secretly hoping that his punishment lasted indefinitely.

The job had its perks though, Yamamoto thought grinning. For the past week the two had stayed after school late, walking home together and walking back to school the next morning for early practice. And Gokudera was so worn out by the heat and physical exhaustion of bossing people around he barley protested when Yamamoto threw a casual arm around the thin teen or stood a little closer than necessary.

His hand tingled at the thought of the contact and Yamamoto glanced over at the dug out again. This time he meet Gokudera's green gaze. Yamamoto's eyes widened at being caught and he waved easily to Gokudera. All Gokudera did though was smirk and point in the opposite direction of where Yamamoto was looking. Yamamoto turned just in time to watch the baseball crash into his face.  
_________

"Ouch, that hurts Gokudera."

Green eyes looked up at him doubtfully and he dabbed the wound again with a cotton ball.

"That's what you get for being a baseball idiot." Gokudera replied uninterestedly.

Yamamoto sat in the infirmary, still in his baseball uniform, which now spotted several blobs of red from where his chin had bled.

Gokudera sat on a stool, barley a breath away from him and dabbed at the drying blood on Yamamoto's chin. His eyes narrowed and he muttered to himself, "That's probably gonna scar."

Tilting his head curiously Yamamoto smiled, "What did you say Gokudera?"

But Gokudera pushed a bony hand through his hair and stood up to grab a bandage.

"You've been really distracted during practice lately. If you keep this up you're going to wind up in the hospital and then what will the tenth think?" Rummaging through a few drawers, Gokudera pulled out several supersized band aids and he smirked triumphantly.

Yamamoto looked down at his fingers nervously and decided that honesty was probably going to get him a black eye to match his split chin but he soldiered on.

"It's because Gokudera is in the club. Having you and baseball together is too perfect and I get distracted."

He peered up at the boy standing before him, band aid hovering between his fingers. Gokudera's face was a dark red that contrasted prettily against his scowl. He was silent for a long moment before he realized Yamamoto was staring at him, gauging his reaction. In a heartbeat he was the same spitfire he usually was.

"You're an idiot, has anyone ever told you that?"

Yamamoto laughed apprehensively, scratching the back of his head.

"Only about fifty times a day." Yamamoto stilled when Gokudera's cool hands brushed against his chin, fastening the adhesive to him. The touch was timid and when Yamamoto lifted his gaze to the Italian there was an odd look on his face. Yamamoto opened his mouth to ask what was wrong but was quickly cut off by chapped, smoke flavored lips.

Before he could react Gokudera had withdrawn to the other side of the room, thrown an ice packet at Yamamoto and was headed towards the doorway. At the door he paused, calling behind him, "Make sure you ice it! Scars won't suit your stupid face."

Yamamoto felt the heat flood his cheeks and he stared at where Gokudera had stood a minute earlier.

Gokudera kissed him. And he hadn't been dreaming.

Smiling that wide hurt his face, even without the split chin.


	6. 60: School

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The best part of everyday can be ordinary

60\. School- The best part of everyday can be ordinary

Despite the unnatural devotion Hibari had for the place, Namimori Middle was quite unremarkable. There wasn't any sort of prestige to it, it wasn't the home of the most athletic student body or the most intelligent or artistic. It wasn't a school for the arts or sciences and it wasn't not on the list of top 20 schools for families to send their children to.

Even in the face of all this lackluster information regarding Namimori, Yamamoto found that he looked forward to school. Everyday he spent at Namimori was a day well spent. But why? It wasn't his insatiable thirst for knowledge (no, that honor belonged to Gokudera), and it wasn't the allure of baseball that had him running out of his house eagerly every morning. A part of him knew it came down to the friends he made here. Not the baseball players, or the girls in his fanclub. No, he looked forward to everyday spent with pure hearted Tsuna, watching the younger boy and playing with the interesting characters surrounding him. He liked to watch Ryohei eagerly try to recruit Hibari into his boxing club on a daily basis. He even enjoyed watching Hibari 'spar' (or decimate depending on who you asked) with said boxer. But it was one prickly dynamite user that stuck out during the school day. From when the two met up on the way to school, or when they sat together at lunch, or even when Yamamoto had the pleasure of watching the silver haired boy nap beside him in class. Because it's how Gokudera showed his trust.

And earning the silver haired boy's trust had to be one of the most difficult, time consuming and, at times, one of the most hopeless endeavors Yamamoto had ever undertaken. But the day when he finally saw the fruit of his labor, the day Gokudera had laughed with him instead of at him when he joked about something trivial, Yamamoto knew he would go through the entire process again. A million times if he had to, just so he could be with Gokudera.

Leaning back in his seat and throwing his hands behind his head, brown eyes glanced down to Gokudera, sleeping soundly on his desk next to him. The bomber simply muttered 'idiota' and Yamamoto smiled so broadly that Tsuna raised his eyebrows in curiosity.

Yeah, Yamamoto decided happily, school was definitely something to look forward to.


	7. 46: Police

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AU where maybe Yamamoto doesn't always say the right thing and he really shouldn't mess with Gokudera and his gun.

46\. Police

"That's not good enough Ken. I told you I want to know where Gamma is! Not where you buried your fucking dog bone, you moron."

Pale hands slammed against the table top harshly, rattling the whole thing. Yamamoto sighed halfheartedly, smile refusing to leave his tan face. Oh boy was his partner pissed.

His partner, one Gokudera Hayato, was a 23 year old cop who had been transferred over to Yamamoto's police division almost a year ago. He still remembered his meeting with the quick tempered male like it had been hours ago.

...one year ago...

Yamamoto had just finished congratulating his former partner-turned boss on his promotion. Sawada Tsunayoshi had blushed happily, waving off his old partner's praises. Everyone had been expecting the brunet to take over after his grandfather had announced his retirement two weeks earlier. But Yamamoto had been the most relaxed about the entire ordeal, a welcomed relief for the smaller male who had been accepting congratulations and well wishes for weeks now. Slugging an arm around the tinier male, Yamamoto had smiled brightly and joked about how he could remember when Tsuna had insisted he didn't even want to be a cop.

"You were so shy about everything Tsuna! You practically fainted when you had take self-defense with Reborn. But now look at you, Mr. Bossman."

Tsuna laughed, blush still freckling his face. "Knock it off Yamamoto! Just because we aren't partners anymore doesn't mean I want you to treat me differently. You're still my best friend."

Yamamoto beamed down at the shorter officer. Tsuna had always been sweet like that. Such a nice guy.

But the smaller boy frowned, eyebrows furrowing as he looked up seriously at the former ballplayer. "But I just hope you get along with your new partner alright. His credentials are amazing. He used to even be part of the Italian Police Force. How cool is that?"

Yamamoto laughed at Tsuna's already forming infatuation with this unknown guy.

"Don't go falling in love with my partner already Tsuna! Besides I'm sure whoever he is, he will be great." His smile dropped from dazzling to blush inducing and his amber eyes glanced curiously at his partner. No boss. Tsuna was his boss now. "Actually Tsuna, where exactly is my new partner?" Although it seemed Tsuna was just as puzzled because his eyes flirted around the office, searching for the face he had saw on the memo this morning. He pulled his bottom lip between his teeth (a nervous habit since their academy days) and responded. "I don't know, Grandpa said he'd be here for my promotion party. But that started a hour ago- Ah wait there he is!" Tsuna's eyes lit up excitedly and he snapped his hand up to wave to the approaching male. "Over here Gokudera-kun!"

The male Tsuna had called out to turned his head quickly and Yamamoto felt his mouth go dry.

His new partner was freakishly pretty. Guys weren't supposed to be that pretty.

The newest member of their police force stopped short of the two males, eyeing the casual sling of Yamamoto's arm over the tinier shoulders of Tsuna, whose faced had sprouted a new blush at the appearance of the newcomer. An eyebrow quirked and a slight frown tugged at corners of his mouth. Tsuna seemed to become hyper aware of the implication of two males being abnormally close because a second latter he had thrown off Yamamoto's heavy arm and he skipped up to the newcomer, eyes alight with happiness.

"Gokudera-kun? Hi there, I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi, your new boss. But ah, you don't have to think of me as your boss. I mean, we are all friends here and I hope that you could consider us friends rather than subordinates and boss. Uh, yeah." Tsuna finished lamely, a hand sneaking to rub embarrassingly at his mess of hair. Red stained Tsuna's face and he firmly held Gokudera's gaze.

Gokudera for his part, seemed to understand the just of what the he had said and smiled politely at the shorter male, offering his hand. "It's nice to meet you Sawada-san."

Again Tsuna paused, caught off guard by how flawless Gokudera's Japanese was. His file had said he was born and raised in Italy, so where had this perfect Japanese come from? But Tsuna caught the other male's hand and shook it happily. When the two parted Tsuna seemed to have gotten over his brief embarrassment and he tried again.

"Ah, you can call me Tsuna or something. Sawada-san was my grandfather and my father."

Gokudera smiled again and he tested out the name on his tongue, "Alright, Tsuna-san it is." Tsuna seemed to finally remember that Yamamoto was even there because he snapped up and waved at Yamamoto's general direction. The tallest male stepped up so he was standing directly beside his boss and offered a bright smile.

"Gokudera-kun, this is Yamamoto Takeshi. He's going to be your new partner here in Japan."

Yamamoto smiled and his stuck out a hand, just like Tsuna had. "Nice to meet you Gokudera. I hope we have fun together."

Gokudera glanced at the offered hand and took it with slightly less enthusiasm than he had with Tsuna. Yamamoto marveled at how delicate his hands were; long elegant fingers with hardly any callouses, hands as warm as they were soft. His hands didn't seem like they usually handled a gun with any bit of efficiency. Even as Yamamoto thought that he felt how firm the man's handshake was and he smiled a little wider at him.

Gokudera swung his gaze back to his new boss, eyes mostly curious, but there was some reservation there. "Was I, uh, interrupting something between you two?"

Both of the other men paused, deciphering the Italian's words at the same moment. Yamamoto laughed at the question and Tsuna waved his hands in a 'no way' motion.

"No, no. Me and Yamamoto? We aren't together. We were partners in the sense we worked together, but we aren't seeing each other!" Tsuna was red, and Yamamoto wondered if Tsuna would ever get used to the exotic male in front of him.

Again Gokudera raised his eyebrows, "It's alright if you are Tsuna-san. It's not that uncommon anymore and I had friends in Italy who were very forthcoming about their sexual interests."

As Tsuna continued to explain his life story about how he was dating his high school sweetheart, Kyoko, Yamamoto looked his new partner over. The guy had to be his age, yet he seemed so mature. His face was like those old Greek statues his mom used to like, with the smooth lines and elegant jawlines. Silver locks framed his face, his hair reaching his neck and highlighting his pale green eyes. He was fragile looking, but his overall body structure suggested he was fast and in shape. The light blue button up shirt hung off his shoulder, loose over a long torso with well-built muscle rubbing underneath it and pulled where the shirt had been tucked into the black standard issued pants. The holster at his hip seemed large and cumbersome for such a petite guy. His badge shone from it's place over his heart, like a message about how Gokudera was a new hope for the city or something. He had long legs and arms and overall Yamamoto admired the way he stood completely poised and alret.

Maybe lean was a better way to describe him? Yamamoto knew he wasn't a poet by any stretch of the imagination but he knew that Gokudera was pretty. And guys weren't supposed to be pretty. But Yamamoto found he could care less about what guys shouldn't or couldn't be and he continued to stare at his new partner.

Tsuna seemed to clear up the misunderstanding on his and Yamamoto's sexuality because the silver haired male relaxed and looked at them both. "Well, it's nice to meet the both of you. Now where should I move my stuff? The loud one, I think he said his name was Ryohei, said to go to 'the extreme here.' Although I don't really understand what that means…" Gokudera began but as he caught Yamamoto staring at him he frowned, brows furrowing. "What?"

"Aha, it's just." Yamamoto had a tendency to forget who he was and what was appropriate to say because he laughed a little and grinned widely at his new partner. "You look really good in those pants."

This simple comment had set off a chain reaction where Gokudera had flushed red with anger and punched Yamamoto in the gut, exclaiming that sexual harassment was against the rules in article 12 section 45. Tsuna had let out a surprised yelp at the sudden gesture, trying to calm down a fuming Gokudera. Yamamoto had laughed from his new seat on the ground, realizing that however delicate Gokudera looked; he packed a punch that could rival Ryohei.

That meeting had left him with a black eye and a bruised rib, and left Gokudera with a bad first impression of him that the Italian still referenced. But after a few months the duo had built up a solid relationship, especially after the Italian's fiery temper had surfaced. It had been a shocker to see him flip from well-mannered cop to a hot tempered Italian in the course of an arrest.

present

Thinking back on that initial meeting Yamamoto should have seen the signs that he was bound to fall in love with the unusual cop who was currently towering over his cuffed captive.

Ken was laughing haughtily, glad he had the upper hand on the cities finest cops. He jerked his head up at Gokudera, eye purposely coy. "Oh yeah pretty boy? And what exactly are ya going to do if I don't want to tell you where Mr. Gamma is? Ya going to handcuff me or something?"

Gokudera frowned at the remark and Yamamoto tensed slightly, not particularly fond of the way the blond looked at his partner.

The spiky haired man let his eyes travel down Gokudera's backside appreciatively. "Actually, I think I like that idea..."

A booted foot struck the edge of the table and both cops smirked as Ken let out a small shriek of surprise.

"We've already got your friend M.M. here and boy, is she willing to give us all the dirt on you fleabag. Enough to put you away for years. And once she speaks I'm sure we'll get you to talk too." Gokudera had this surprisingly dark smile on his lips that made Yamamoto swallow hard. Not only was Gokudera good at his job, but he looked good while he did it. The silver haired male slowly circled around the blond who had begun to sweat the tiniest bit. "Oh yeah? I bet you're lying you silver haired freak!"

A well calculated frown pulled at Gokudera's lips, his eyes leering at the criminal. He sneered. "Oh, that hurt. How dare you insult my hair, like I haven't heard that before." But the scowl on Gokudera's face was still threatening and Ken gulped as Gokudera leaned all his weight on either side of the guy's chair. A tauntingly smirk planted itself on the cop's lips."You scared yet, dog?" Gokudera purred darkly, eyes flashing a deeper green. Yamamoto knew that dark look all too well.

When Ken didn't respond Gokudera pulled back and turned his back to leave the room. Directing his comment at his silent partner he order, "Yamamoto, go get M.M. and tell her we're ready to listen to her."

Yamamoto smiled at the cop's gamble and he pushed off the padded wall to follow Gokudera. "You got it 'Dera."

But just as Gokudera opened the door and nervous cry of "Wait!" stopped him. Green eyes locked with Yamamoto's and they both grinned. Bingo

The partners turned to glance uninterestedly at the teen. Ken fidgeted in his seat, his face trying to remain smooth and unruffled. He barked loudly as a laugh and smirked.

"Well you should've just asked nicely 'Dera-kun'."

Yamamoto shrugged at the glare directed at him from using that nickname again. He resumed his position against the back wall and watched as Gokudera settled on the table, tape recorder starting up.

"Start talking."

Ken grinned cheekily up at Gokudera, his tongue tracing his lips suggestively. "Although, why don't you tell me more about yourself first? Dera-kun."

Gokudera narrowed his glare and growled menacingly at the blond.

Thirty minutes later Ken was still giving them the run around. Gokudera was down to his last straw and Yamamoto didn't even know how much longer that was going to last. And he was getting really sick of listening to the flea hitting on his partner. Said partner was leaning angrily against the table, arms folded and nasty glare in place. That glare could intimidate the meanest of criminals but Ken kept up his happy façade. Twelve minutes later Gokudera left, hand reaching to his back pocket for the ever present pack of cigarettes, with an excuses of 'I need a smoke'. Once the door had shut Ken smirked triumphantly at his remaining interrogator, obviously under the impression he had won.

Yamamoto just let his own smile overtake his face. Gokudera may always play the good cop/bad cop game, with himself as being the bad cop and it usually worked. But on those occasions it didn't Yamamoto was free to try out the role. And truth be told he was damn scary as a bad cop. His smile turned dark and his eyes narrowed in challenge as he strolled over to the blond man.

"My turn."

Five minutes later Yamamoto shut the door behind him, blocking out the cries of 'I'll spill, I'll spill everything' escaping the criminal in the room. He sagged a little against the door, letting out a deep breath as the thrill of menacing the dog boy left him. There was always this rush when he got to be something other than the laughing idiot. That's probably why Gokudera had finally given up on being the nice guy so soon after entering the Japanese police force. Being the bad cop was fun.

Haru, the record keeper around the office, was already waiting when the tan male had stepped out of the room. She smirked tauntingly at the man. "Good job as usual, Yamamoto-kun."

Yamamoto laughed shyly and diverted the oncoming questions with, "Have you seen-"

"He's at the usual spot."

A smile and Yamamoto took off to find his partner.

It took him exactly two minutes to find Gokudera, out in dimly lit niche down a less populated hallway, cigarette pinched between long fingers. As Yamamoto approached he let out a deep breath, smoke billowing around him.

The taller man fell backwards to lean on the wall beside him, shoulder brushing the smaller male's shoulder. "Hey." He said simply.

Of course Gokudera didn't respond -he never did.

A few minutes of silence surrounded the pair. Gokudera smoking quietly. Yamamoto watching him out of the corner of his eye.

Finally a defeated sigh came from Gokudera. Yamamoto tilted his head so the other knew he was listening.

"Why do I even need to be there if you've got the whole good cop/bad cop thing down by yourself?"

Yamamoto laughed and he knew Gokudera was rolling his eyes.

"What are you talking about Gokudera? You play the bad cop so well."

"It works like 70 percent of the time, but you don't need me. When I fail I always need you." Yamamoto smiled at the words, even though he knew Gokudera didn't mean them the way Yamamoto wanted them to mean.

And the small male seemed to realize how he sounded because he changed his words. "I mean I need you to help me get a confession out of the crook. Not anything else."

"I know."

But Gokudera could hear the almost unbelieving laugh in those words because after another puff of smoke he muttered. "Idiot."

And Yamamoto smiled, because he had been doing so well through the entire conversation and interrogation. He didn't even hit the guy when Ken had been trying to pick up Gokudera. He deserved a reward. Which was his reasoning why he leaned over so his hand could cup Gokudera's chin and kissed him.

It wasn't like their usual kisses like he really wanted but they both knew they were still at work and that they could continue this later tonight at Yamamoto's apartment.

Yamamoto pulled back enough so his partner could inhale after a moan had finally escaped Gokudera's warm mouth. He rested his head against the other's, watching the haze slowly leave green eyes. Pale lips twitched and Gokudera smirked haughtily. "Later, moron."

Pressing a closed mouth kiss against the appealing smirk, Yamamoto thought later was much too far away. When they broke again, the taller of the two simply smiled. "I know."

Gokudera finished the last bit of his cigarette before extinguishing it and pushing away from their corner and walking back to see if he could get M.M. to spill all her information like Ken had. Yamamoto knew his small lover would have better luck with the woman. He watched Gokudera as he walked down the marble hallway, heels echoing off the walls.

Damn.

A year later and Gokudera still looked good in those pants.


	8. 17: Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Potential omake of Theme 46

The sound of the shower shutting off woke Yamamoto. Amber eyes flew open, the man fully awake within seconds.

He had fallen asleep in the apartment he and Gokudera had been sharing for three years now. It was the morning after Gokudera had gotten back from a mission in Russia and a month since they had last seen each other. Yamamoto dragged his hand across his face, his ears warming up at very vivid memories of the night before. That would explain why their place looked like it had been hit by a tornado.

But that didn't explain the dream he'd had about Gokudera and him being cops.

It had been a very pleasant dream to say the least. As he thought back on the lingering images of his slender lover clad in a police uniform he buried his face into his hands and blushed. God, the things he'd done to Gokudera with those handcuffs on…

A weight pressed down on the bed by his knee but Yamamoto didn't look up at the new presence until cool finger tips were softly carding through his hair. Glancing up, his gaze fell on a freshly out of the shower Gokudera.

The male he'd dreamt about wore a half lidded gaze, staring at his lover curiously. A tiny questioning frown distracted Yamamoto for a second before he took in all of Gokudera.

Shirtless, with a dark blue towel (Yamamoto's towel by the size and color of it) resting lowly on his hips. The dark blue against his pale skin had always been particularly appealing to him and he told the Italian as frequently as he could how much he adored the look. Yamamoto smiled at how his small lover still had his hair wet but how he also had the gold ring he'd given Gokudera after the 1st anniversary, still looped around a necklace that hung against his damp skin.

Amber eyes lit up with mirth and he leaned forward to press his mouth against Gokudera's. "Morning."

"You still snore like you're trying to wake the dead." Was Gokudera's incredibly romantic reply.

Used to the quips Yamamoto pulled his lover so Gokudera was against his chest. "You kept talking nonsense in your sleep." Gokudera pulled away to turned and watch the Rain Guardian's face curiously, speaking his mind as usual. "What were you dreaming about?"

Yamamoto chuckled before he leaned down, touching his forehead against the still damp one of Gokudera. Holding the other's gaze he grinned mischievously. "You'd look pretty damn hot in a police officer's uniform, you know that?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Cops AU was too much fun to let pass by. This chapter can be seen as a continuation as the last chapter or a stand alone.

**Author's Note:**

> Just the beginning of a very long piece of work. Some of these chapters will connect, some won't but I will be sure to let you know. This is an upload from ff.net and I already have up to chapter 15 there so I will try to transfer the others here. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed! Comments and critiques welcomed :)


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